


All better

by Nary



Category: Adventure World (game)
Genre: Adorable, Books, Children, Cuddling & Snuggling, Disabled Character, Gen, Orphanage, Orphans, Parent Death, Reading, Sappy, Scars, Storytelling, Sweet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-07-08
Updated: 2012-07-08
Packaged: 2017-11-09 09:52:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 544
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/454155
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nary/pseuds/Nary
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>As Roscoe had predicted, the orphanage's library was perpetually short on books for the younger children - they tended to get chewed on and torn and fought over, and so most of them didn't last very long. The couple dozen books Aleyn brought with him were quickly in the hands of the kids, and the sight of the previously unruly bunch all sitting around reading made him unreasonably pleased.</p>
            </blockquote>





	All better

As Roscoe had predicted, the orphanage's library was perpetually short on books for the younger children - they tended to get chewed on and torn and fought over, and so most of them didn't last very long. The couple dozen books Aleyn brought with him were quickly in the hands of the kids, and the sight of the previously unruly bunch all sitting around reading made him unreasonably pleased.

There was an impatient tugging at the leg of his trousers. He looked down and saw a little girl with tawny brown hair and golden eyes looking up at him with one of the new books in her hand. "Read it to me," she said without preamble. She was a shifter, and he guessed her age at around three.

"Uh, sure," Aleyn said, looking around for somewhere to sit down. The storyteller's chair was already occupied by Roscoe, who had a rapt audience, so he settled for getting down on the floor, sitting cross-legged. The girl wasted no time in curling up in his lap, impatiently opening the book - one of legends and ancient history, probably a bit old for her, but she didn't seem to mind since it also had plenty of illustrations. Whenever she got bored with a particular story, she'd just take charge and flip ahead to the next page, which made reading a bit challenging, but Aleyn took it in stride.

"What happened to your hand?" she asked him in the middle of a sentence.

Aleyn paused, resisting the urge to self-consciously curl it into a fist. "It... got hurt."

The little girl nodded sagely. "I got hurt too, in the big splosion." She tugged up her dress over her knees to show Aleyn the still-livid scars on her left leg. It looked like burn marks, but also as if something heavy had fallen on her ankle, which was a little twisted inwards, as if it hadn't quite set right. "And my mama died," she added almost conversationally.

"I'm sorry," said Aleyn. He thought about telling her that his father had died in the disaster too, but he didn't know if she would really understand, or if it might upset her to talk about it too much, so he settled for holding her a little closer. She nuzzled into the crook of his arm, but kept poking curiously at his scars.

"What's your name?" he asked her, thinking to distract her.

"Saiya. Does it hurt?" she asked, looking up at him.

"Not anymore." He didn't mention the occasional nightmares or panic attacks, figuring she didn't mean that sort of hurting.

"But your fingers are gone!" she pointed out, tentatively touching the stumps above his knuckles.

Aleyn forced himself not to jerk his hand away, instead letting her explore the pale, gnarled skin. "Yeah. But it's all right. Even though I miss them, I still manage pretty well even without them."

She nodded, but bent down to kiss the back of his hand anyway. "All better," she told him cheerfully, and turned her attention back to the storybook. "Read this one!" she ordered, pointing to a picture of a knight standing by a ruined tower in a dark forest, and, once he managed to pull himself together, Aleyn did just as she asked.

**Author's Note:**

> You can find me on Tumblr at [naryrising](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/naryrising) if you want to ask questions, make requests, or chat!


End file.
